How innovation can improve the lives of low-wage ASEAN gig workers

The rise of the gig economy has opened up countless opportunities for low-wage workers, with many platforms enabling individuals to find flexible work and generate an income from various jobs and tasks. While this can be enormously beneficial for those looking to gain financial independence or earn extra income on the side, it also raises serious questions about the real access those workers have to financial services and well-being benefits in the long haul.

Gig workers often face inadequate access to financial services and well-being benefits, which could lead to long-term financial challenges or a lack of access to necessary services. UNCDF explains, "while folks participating in gig work are exempt from traditional workplace restrictions, the nature of gig work where gig workers earn based on each "short-term" gig means that they could face unpredictable incomes and have difficulties accessing relevant financial services that meet their needs."

Spotting an opportunity to make a difference, SMU Master of Science in Innovation (MI) graduate Maria Antonia Hoyos Gutierrez decided to start GoNsave, a company seeking to improve low-wage gig workers' well-being through a virtual assistant and a network of benefits.

Launched in 2021, the platform serves as a benefits marketplace for the gig economy by rewarding performance and collaboration, while unlocking access to needed financial services and well-being benefits.

“I decided to make a foray into entrepreneurship because, in recent years, I found myself developing entrepreneurial initiatives for others,” shares Maria, formerly Co-founder & CEO at a start-up.

“I realised I was an ‘intrapreneur’ achieving others' dreams. I selected the MI programme as it offers a robust curriculum for my entrepreneurial journey.”

From an entrepreneurial family in Colombia to a vibrant Lion City

Hailing from a Colombian coffee region, Maria had studied Government and International Relations back home as an undergraduate and worked in digital research and development roles, business development, and financial technology.

When she decided to make a career shift and become an entrepreneur, Maria knew she needed to seek the best resources to help her through the process. After extensive research on different programmes and schools, she settled on the Singapore Management University MI programme. Located in the heart of a global financial hub, this cutting-edge programme immersed her in the world of innovation, allowing her to learn from industry experts and connect with other ambitious, like-minded individuals.

She explains: “The programme took me through the many steps of starting a new business, from ideation, product development and financial management for a start-up to marketing and scaling up.”

With each term designed to cover a business milestone, adds Maria, the programme is tailored to help aspiring leaders navigate the ever-changing business landscape. Whether a student aims to lead a large organisation or start a ground-breaking company, as in the case of GoNsave; the master’s degree in Innovation cultivates the skills and mindset needed to succeed in both settings.

Another draw for Maria was Singapore’s innovative and business-friendly environment. Singapore has become a magnet for international entrepreneurs and workers with a thriving economy and trailblazing spirit unrivalled in the region. Start-up founders often appreciate the numerous opportunities for growth within the country's vibrant business community and its robust infrastructure and highly educated workforce.

“I decided to move to Singapore because Singapore is a FinTech-leading economy,” says Maria.

“The start-up ecosystem and the vibrant FinTech network were the main reasons I chose the city.”

Upon graduating in 2021, she decided to stay in the city-state. As Maria notes, Southeast Asia is one of the world's most influential and dynamic regions, with a population of over 570 million and a booming economy expected to reach $4.7 trillion by 2025. This makes it essential for financial institutions to keep pace with the region's rapid economic development and build innovative products that can tap into its massive potential. Whether providing services that help businesses grow or supporting new start-ups, financial institutions in Southeast Asia have a vital role to play in fuelling growth and prosperity across the region.

“The financial services industry holds tremendous potential that could be unleashed if we create innovative products to close the gap and facilitate accessible and valuable financial services to the 70 per cent of the adult population who are either ‘underbanked’ or ‘unbanked’,” adds Maria.


Closing the gap

Because the unbanked typically do not have a credit history or access to credit, they are often forced to rely on alternative financial services that are more expensive than traditional ones. This can strain already tight budgets, making it even more difficult for low-income individuals and families to get ahead.

Growing up in an entrepreneurial family in the agricultural businesses, Maria glimpsed the effects of financial uncertainty as her childhood friend — the daughter of a farm manager — could not afford higher education.

“At that moment, I asked myself, ‘Why do I have options whereas she does not? Where does this economic inequality come from’?” adds Maria.

“What keeps me up at night is that around 2.5 billion individuals, especially those in developing countries, don’t have access to formal financial services because they do not have a credit history or financial records. I dream of using the power of data and its ownership to unlock access to their records so that multiple institutions can offer them cheaper and fairer services.”

Maria's GoNsave platform stores gig workers' financial and work records in a way that allows them to share when and with whom they want. Her company aims to serve the 130 million low-wage workers in ASEAN and Latin America working for platforms such as Grab, Foodpanda, Lalavan, Uber and Rappi, among other on-demand work verticals. She quips: “We reduce platforms' workforce churn rates, increase loyalty and reduce acquisition costs.”

To work towards such lofty ambitions, Maria honed her entrepreneurial skills during MI initiatives such as the Capstone Project — which applies the knowledge and skills acquired throughout the programme to investigate, analyse, and propose a solution to a real-world problem. 

She recalls her time during her Capstone project when she had to pitch her business idea to her classmates. "The pitch was a total failure," admits Maria. It was disappointing when she did not manage to gain the buy-in of her peers. “Hence, I decided to double down on my efforts to test my idea: I hopped on my bicycle, chasing down food delivery riders on the street. I interviewed them while helping them with their deliveries. By doing so, I discovered how hard their work was.”

She also participated in the BIG Incubation Programme, organised by the SMU Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE). The experience was key to ramping up Maria’s business idea as she received support from the community, especially from Yi Jinzhou, Senior Manager of IIE, who helped her make industry connections, and SMU Research Fellow Dr Chon-Phung Lim, who was her mentor.

The strong foundation gained during her practice-based entrepreneurship education at SMU has spurred Maria to think big and uncover sustainable solutions to real-world problems. In fact, GoNsave's goal is to reach 39 million location-based independent contractors, 30 per cent of the 130 million workers performing low-qualified tasks in the next five years. With her ground-breaking platform, Maria will hopefully expand economic opportunities for millions of self-employed workers, freelancers, and independent contractors — such that they can be part of a healthier ecosystem, rather than battle a growing socio-economic challenge.